Dinner is delicious, but difficult to enjoy because my headache is getting worse, making me nauseous. I know Edward will take me home if I tell him, but he's having such a good time with his parents, and I hate to be a Debbie downer. So, I try to keep it to myself and excuse myself to the restroom.
The second I close the door, the delicious dinner becomes anything but and comes back up. I try to be quiet and turn the fan on to disguise the sound of retching.
Once I'm sure everything is out, I try to stand up, and a wave of dizziness crashes over me, and I fall back on my butt.
"Shit," I curse, blinking rapidly as the room spins.
Suddenly, there's a knock on the door, and I'm sure it's Edward. I hate ruining his evening, but I tell him to come in as I sit on the floor. It's not Edward though.
Esme peeks her head in, eyes wide as she takes in my haggard appearance. "Bella, are you okay?"
I smile sadly, shaking my head. "I think I caught a stomach bug. Or the tiny human is just mad at me."
She comes in, closing the door behind her before grabbing a washcloth and dampening it. Kneeling down beside me, she presses the cool rag to the back of my neck.
"Alice made me so sick when I was pregnant with her," she says. "I even had a nest of pillows on the bathroom floor, which I basically lived on."
"She's not been too bad overall. I'm so sorry, but I think we might need to leave."
She nods. "Just sit here. I'll go get Edward."
"Don't alarm him."
She laughs softly. "If you're sick, he'll be alarmed. That's who my son is."
"Then I should tell him." I try to stand, and the room spins even more. I stumble forward, and Esme just barely catches me before I dive head first into the toilet.
"Edward!" she yells, helping me back down onto my knees. "Just sit, Bella. You're in no condition to walk."
Both Edward and Carlisle rush to the bathroom with Edward quickly taking his mother's place. I squeeze my eyes shut as another wave of nausea crashes over me and lurch forward, gagging into the bowl.
"What's going on, Bella?" he asks.
"Headache," I mumble, feeling utterly embarrassed.
"Dad, do you have your bag handy?"
"Sure;, I'll be right back. Let's give them some room, Esme," Carlisle says, escorting his wife from the bathroom.
Once they leave, Edward presses his hand to my cheek and tilts my head up. "Talk to me, beautiful. How long have you had this headache?"
I look at him sheepishly. "All day," I whisper. "I'm so dizzy. Ugh, I'm sorry for ruining the evening."
"Don't apologize," he says as his dad comes in and hands him a bag. "Thanks, Dad. I'm going to take your blood pressure, Bella."
He pulls the cuff out of the bag and wraps it around my arm before getting a stethoscope out. Carlisle stands in the doorway, looking concerned as Edward pumps up the cuff.
"Jesus, call an ambulance, Dad," Edward says, pulling the stethoscope from his ears. "Her blood pressure is one-eighty-two over one-eighteen."
"On it," Carlisle says, running from the room.
"Let me see your feet, beautiful."
He pulls my boots off and sighs. "Shit, you're so swollen."
"What's going on? Is the baby okay?"
He looks up at me, worry etched on his face. "I'm so sorry, but she needs to come right away."
"No!" I gasp, cradling my stomach. "She's almost a month early!"
"Bella, you will die if we don't deliver her. I don't say that to scare you, but it's the truth. This is hopefully still preeclampsia, but it could easily develop into eclampsia, and you could have seizures. Medications and delivering the baby are the only things that will help. She's almost full term. The risks to her are minimal compared to the risks to you."
Tears fill my eyes, and I just start crying. My tiny human means everything to me. The idea of something happening to her … I can't stand it. She's not ready to come. She's warm and cozy and oh so happy inside of me. I'm not ready to let her out into this scary world. But if something happens to me, she won't make it either.
"I'm so scared," I sob.
He pulls me into his arms, holding me tightly as Carlisle comes back in, saying an ambulance is on its way. Edward puts his arms under my legs, lifting me up. "We'll wait in the living room where you can be more comfortable."
He carries me to the couch and holds me close while we wait for the distant sounds of sirens.
"I need to call my dad," I sniffle. "I-I need him."
He nods. "Tell him to meet us at Olympic Medical Center."
I pull out my phone, dialing Dad's number as my hands shake. It rings three times before he finally picks up.
"Hey, Bells. How was dinner?"
"Daddy, something's wrong. I-I'm going to the hospital."
"Are you in labor?"
"No, but … Edward, talk to him." I hand the phone over, gasping as I cry.
"Charlie, we're going to Olympic Medical Center. Bella's blood pressure is through the roof, and I think we need to go ahead and deliver the baby before things get worse. She needs you there … Yeah, of course, I'll tell her. We'll see you there."
Edward hangs up the phone as we hear the sirens.
"He's meeting us at the hospital. He said he loves you more than anything."
I sniffle, holding my bump. "I love him the same. Make sure he knows that if something happens to me."
He holds me closer. "I won't let anything happen to you, beautiful—to either of you."
I don't own Twilight.
Thank you, Ashley for prereading and Alice's White Rabbit for beta'ing!
